International Journal of Research in Engineering and Science (IJRES)

ISSN (Online): 2320-9364, ISSN (Print): 2320-9356

www.ijres.org Volume 3 Issue 11 November. 2015 PP.01-06

Analysis of the Thermal Efficiency of Condensing Wall-Hung

Boiler
HANG Xin1, CHEN Yu1
1

(College of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, China)

Abstract: To analyze the impact of the outdoor temperature and humidity on thermal efficiency of the
condensing boiler, the experimental platform is set up based on the condensing boiler and low-temperature
radiantfloor heating system. Using the method of experiment, its measured that amount of natural gas, the
temperature of supply and return water, the outdoor temperature and humidity etc. The thermal efficiency is
calculated in different outdoor temperature and humidity. Also it is analyzed that the impact of that the change
of the outdoor temperature and humidity on thermal efficiency. The results show that, when the outdoor
temperature is 8~15 and humidity is 30%~70%RH, the impact of the outdoor humidity on thermal efficiency
is very poor. But the impact of outdoor temperature on thermal efficiency is more remarkable. Thermal
efficiency is the higher when the outdoor temperature is the higher.
Keywords: condensing boiler, outdoor temperature,outdoor humidity,radiant floor heating, thermal efficiency

I.

INTRODUCTION

With the intension of the global energy and deteriorative environment, natural gas has been applied to the
every field as a kind of clean and efficient resource. Compared with other fossil fuel, natural gas has high
thermal values, and do not produce dust after burning. It has advantages in efficiency and economy. The natural
gas will play an important role in the social and economic development in the future.
As one of the most developed cities, Shanghai is in the forefront in consuming the energy. With the
development of transporting the natural gas from the west to the east and other gas source project, the supply of
natural gas in Shanghai has been increasing perfect. At present, the gas sources are mainly the natural gas from
the west to the east, the East China Sea, Sichuan to the east, and LNG. It is equationted backbone network,
providing an important guarantee for a smooth and orderly supply for the city.
With the development of urban natural gas, Gas-fired boilers have been used universally. Chinese scholars
have done more research in thermal efficiency of boilers. For example, Wang Jianguo got the reasonable
thermal efficiency of the boiler by analyzing the impact of various heat loss of the gas boiler to thermal
efficiency, providing a reference for the selection of the configuration of the boiler[1]. Zhang Wensheng,
MengJianqiong etc. analyze the relationship among the gas boiler thermal efficiency and smoke temperature and
heat loss, and they derive the estimation equation of thermal efficiency[2]. Through the theoretical analysis and
calculation, Wang Zhiyong etc. find that lowering flue gas temperature has a major impact to improve thermal
efficiency, and flue gas temperature decrease from 195 to 40, thermal efficiency will increase about 8%[3].
Aimed at that the test of thermal efficiency is not easily operated, BaiYufang and Su Xiaoguang design thermal
efficiency test system based on the C ++ builder. It has practical and cost-effective in practice[4]. As heat source,
condensing boiler has high efficiency and could protect the environmental in the stand-alone residential heating
equipment. So it has become the research object currently. Due to the requirement of the temperature of supply
and return water, low-temperature floor radiant heating system can more sufficiently improve the efficiency of
the condensing boiler[5].
Based on the condensing boiler and low-temperature floor radiant heating system, this article analyzes the
condensing boiler combustion characteristics and the impact of climate parameters outdoor conditions on
thermal efficiency. It will provide users with operating parameters to achieve the purpose of energy saving and
economic operation.

II.

Calculation of natural gas heat value and the properties of smoke

In this article, the condensing boiler uses the natural gas from the west to the east. Its components and
volume fraction of composition is in the table.1[6].
Table.1 Components of Natural Gas
Component
Volume fraction%
Component
Volume fraction %

CH4
96.207
iC5H12
0.003

C2H6
0.740
nC5H12
0.003

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C3H8
0.094
CO2
2.741

iC4H10
0.011
N2
0.161

nC4H10
0.011
He
0.029

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Analysis of the Thermal Efficiency of Condensing Wall-Hung Boiler

2.1 Calculation of the ideal natural gas
According to the conditions of combustion and measurement, the heat value of gas ideal can be found in
various documents. From national standard, the natural gas reference conditions that Chinese used are the
combustion reference conditions (20,101.325kPa) and metering reference conditions (20,101.325kPa)[7].
Combined with the volume fraction of the natural gas respective components, the mole fraction can be
calculated. So the high and low heat values are found and could be calculated through the hybrid rules. Results
are calculated as follows.

H h0 H hi ri 36.24MJ / m3 Hl0 Hl i ri 32.65MJ / m3

2.2 Calculation of the actual heat value
As the actual natural gas is not the ideal gas. It should be amended according to the actual gas when
calculating the volume heat. The amendment of actual heat value is mainly completed by the compression factor
and it can be referred to the GB/T 11062-1998 which contains natural gas heat, density, Wobbe index and
relative density [8].Through the associated table and a series of the calculations, it can be derived that the
summation factor of the natural gas respective components. The compression factor Z=0.9982. And the actual
high and low heat values are calculated through the compression factor Z. The calculation is following.

Hh0
36. 31MJ / m3
Z
H0
Hl l 32. 71MJ / m3
Z

Hh

2.3 Amount of air required for combustion

O2 required for the combustion is generally obtained directly from the air. In the condition of the ideal case,
the volume fraction of dry air contains 21% of O2 and 79% N2.
Then the practical amount of air required for combustion is following.

1
n
(1)
m r CmHn
0. 21
4

Among the Equation (1), r CmHn means the volume fraction of CmHn , and Vo means the practical amount of

Vo

air. The calculation isV

9. 3174m3 / m3 .

Because of the gas and air is difficult to mix uniformly, the amount of air supplied is generally greater
than the theoretical amount of air in the actual combustion process. Here it takes the excess air coefficient
=1.15. Eventually the actual amount of air V

Vo 10. 7150m3 / m3 .

2.4 Calculation of the combustion products

The theoretical flue gas produced can be calculated by the combustion reaction equation. As part of the
combustion products are influenced by the parameters outside. So we take the calculation of combustion
products here in the condition of that the outdoor temperature is 13.1 and the outdoor humidity is 52.6%.
2.4.1The theoretical amount of the flue gas (=1)
Through the component of the natural gas, the flue gas mainly contains CO 2 and H2O after combustion.
Then the volume of CO2 is following.

VCO 0. 01 r C0 mr C H
2

m n

1. 0083m

/ m3

And the volume H2O is following.

VH0 O 0. 01 r C H 126. 6 dg Vd
2. 0095m3 / m3
0 a
2
m n
2

d a The moisture content of the gas

d g The moisture content of the gas

126.6The specific volume of water vapor in the ground state

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Analysis of the Thermal Efficiency of Condensing Wall-Hung Boiler

da 0. 622

ps
, Relative humidity of moist air, pAtmospheric pressure, ps The
p ps

saturated pressure of water vapor corresponding to air temperature. Here we take the moisture content of the gas

da 0 .
The volume of N2 is following.
0
N2

0. 79V0 0. 01r N 7. 3623m3 / m3

2

The volume of He is following.

VN0 0. 79V0 0. 01r N 2. 9 104 m3 / m3

2

So the total volume of the flue gas is following.

Vf 0 VCO VH0O VN0 VHe (2)

2

4.2.2 The actual amount of flue gas(=1.15)

=1.15 is substituted for calculating CO2, water vapor, N2, He, and the volume of excess oxygen.
Therefore the results of the theoretical and actual combustion products as follow.
Table.2 Natural Gas Combustion Products Results Summary
Products
Unit
Theoretical values
CO2
m3/m3
1.0083
H 2O
m3/m3
2.0095
N2
m3/m3
7.3623
He
m3/m3
2.910-4
3
3
O2
m /m
0
Air moisture content
g/ m3
4.9
Dry gas moisture content
g/m3
0
The total volume of flue gas
m3/m3
10.3804

III.

Practical values
1.0083
2.0181
8.4665
2.910-4
0.2935
4.9
0
11.7867

Measuring the experimental parameters of the condensing boiler-low temperature floor

radiant heating system

3.1 Introduction of the principle of the experiment system

The Fig.1 is structural schematic diagram of the system. The system is composed of the condensing boiler,
manifolds, floor heating coil, Valves, etc. As shown in Fig.1, the condensing boiler is the heat source and the
hot-water is heat medium. Through the heating coil, the hot-water radiates heating to the room.
flue gas
air

condensing boiler
natural gas gas valve

temperature sensor 1
supply water

supply valve
temperature sensor 2
return water
turbine flowmeter
compositive mainfolds

floor radiant system

Fig.1 The structure diagram of the system

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Analysis of the Thermal Efficiency of Condensing Wall-Hung Boiler

In this experimental system, the natural gas is transported to the condensing boiler. So the amount of the
natural gas can be read through the gas meter and its flow can be calculated in different water supply and return
temperature. The measuring cylinder is used to collect the condensate water and read the value of condensate
water. And other equipment is used to gather the signal of temperature, humidity and flow. At the beginning of
the experiment, the temperature of supply water is set 50 and the experimental parameters are recorded and
measured at the same time. When the system reaches the steady state, the parameters are recorded and measured
about 2~3h continuously to get more sufficient experimental data.
Similarly, the temperature of supply water is adjusted to 55, 60, 63, 67, 71 ,75 respectively
and measure the parameters.
3.2 Laboratory equipment
Based on the requirements of the experimental parameters, its needed to purchase the equipment
procurement and collect the wire. The equipment and functions of the system is shown in Table3.

equipment
Turbine flowmeter
Temperature Sensor
Temperature and humidity sensor
Graduate
PLC and each module

IV.

Table.3 equipment and functions

functions
Measuring flow signal of the water supply and return
Measuring the water supply and return water temperature signal
Measuring outdoor temperature and humidity signal
Measuring the amount of the condensate water
Transforming the analog signal into the digital signal to obtain the
measurement parameters

Analysis and Calculation of thermal efficiency

4.1 A brief analysis of thermal efficiency

Thermal efficiency of the condensing boiler is defined as the ratio of useful heat obtained by heating the
water and chemical heat

Q Qg Hl Qf Qc Qd
Qw
a
Qgc
Hl

(3)

Qa The physical heat that air take in, kcal/m3, Qg The physical heat that the natural gas take in,
kcal/m3,

Qgc The chemical heat of the natural gas, kcal/m3, Hl

LHV of the natural gas, kcal/m3, Qf

The total heat that the flue gas take away, kcal/m3, Qc The heat that shell and pipe wall dissipate,
kcal/m3, Qd The heat that incomplete combustion take away, kcal/m3, Qw The effective heat that the
heated water obtained, kcal/m3.
Due to the fact that the sealing and insulation of the condensation boiler casing and external piping are
better, so the heat loss is relatively less and can be negligible in the calculation. Qc 0 . Besides, since the
condensing boiler uses the premix combustion, the natural gas combustion can be considered complete.
Qd 0 . So, the Equation (3) can be simplified as Equation (4) as follow.

Q Qg Hl Qf
Qw
a
(4)
Qgc
Hl
The above Equation (4) shows that: one of the main effects of thermal efficiency is the heat that flue gas
takes away.
4.2 Thermal efficiency calculation
When the heating system runs to the thermal equilibrium condition, the parameters are measured at
different supper water temperatures. According to the experimental data of system, thermal efficiency is
calculated through the following equation.

M C t 1 t
V Q1

273 t
273

101. 3
100%
Pa Pg Ps

(5)

Thermal efficiency,%; MThe amount of hot waterkg/min; CThe specific heat capacity
of water4.210-3MJ/(kg);

t1 supper water temperature, ; t2 return water temperature, ; V

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Analysis of the Thermal Efficiency of Condensing Wall-Hung Boiler

natural gas flow rate, m3/min;

Q1 natural gas LHV, MJ/m3; t g natural gas temperature, ; Pa

Atmospheric pressure, kPa; Pg natural gas pressure, kPa;

Ps saturation vapor pressure when the

natural gas temperature is t g , kPa.

7. 2031735. 74/ t

Ps 10

234

Besides, from another point of view, Equation (4) shows that the flue gas heat recovery is the main factor
influencing thermal efficiency. So some objective factors can be neglected and the combustion heat and
recovery heat recovered by the condensation are just taken into the consideration. Then the actual thermal
efficiency calculation is following.

Qgas Qqr

(6)

Qgas

Qgas Low calorific value gas heat released, kJ; Qqr recovery heat recovered by the condensation,
kJ.
Through two different calculations of thermal efficiency, the error can be compared to choose a more
suitable calculation.
4.3 Calculation results
When return water temperature is stable, it is measured that the amount of natural gas and the temperature
of supply & return water. Thermal efficiency is calculated by Equation (5). For example, when the supply water
temperature is 50 and the outdoor temperature and humidity are 13.1 and 52.6%RH respectively, the
calculation is following.
After the experimental measurement, the data is collected and calculated, as follows.
The water flow is M 8.083kg / min . tg 13.1, t1 33.58, t 2 30.63, the gas flow is

V 3.05 103 m3 / min , Q1 32.71MJ / m3 , Pa 101.325kPa , Pg 2kPa , Ps 1.49kPa . So

thermal efficiency is104.67%.
In the same way, thermal efficiency is
and Equation (6) is
approximately.

103.90%

by Equation (6). The error between Equation (5)

0.77% . So the Equation (6) can be used to calculate thermal efficiency

4.3.1 Analysis of relation between outdoor humidity and thermal efficiency

In the outdoor weather conditions, the humidity has some influence on the thermal efficiency. According to
the Equation (6), it shows that the condensation water has impact on thermal efficiency. And the main factors
affecting the amount of water is the moisture content of condensed fumes.
When the outdoor temperature and humidity are 13.1 and 52.6%RH respectively, other conditions are
kept the same and the humidity is just changed. Then its necessary to analyze thermal efficiency in different
humidity.
105.0

Thermal efficiency/%

104.5

104.0

103.5

103.0

102.5
0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

Outdoor humidity/%

Fig.2 Outdoor humidity and thermal efficiency curve

As the Fig.2 shows, when the supply water temperature is 50 and outdoor temperature remains
unchanged, with the increase of outdoor humidity, thermal efficiency gradually moderate increase. When

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Analysis of the Thermal Efficiency of Condensing Wall-Hung Boiler

outdoor humidity increases of 10%, thermal efficiency will increase about 0.03%. While outdoor humidity rises
from 30% to 80%, the thermal efficiency increases of 0.15%. Thermal efficiency increases marginally, and
maintained at between 103.9% and 104%. It can be inferred that the outdoor humidity has little effect on
thermal efficiency. So as one of the factors affecting thermal efficiency, the outdoor humidity can be ignored.
Next, the outdoor temperature should be focused on the effect on thermal efficiency.
4.3.2 Analysis of relation between outdoor temperature and thermal efficiency
Outdoor temperature mainly affects gas temperature and air temperature, which has an impact on thermal
efficiency. During the experimental period, the outdoor temperature is varied between 8 and 15. When the
supply water temperature remains constant, the outdoor temperature has a little change during the experimental
measurements. So the number of thermal efficiency is less in different outdoor temperature. They are
summarized as shown in Table 4.
Table.4 relationship between outdoor temperature and thermal efficiency
Supply water
temperature/
50
55
60
63
67
71
75

Outdoor temperature/
8
9
/
/
/
103.63
102.80
103.22
102.25
102.46
/
101.76
/
/
/
/

10
/
103.62
103.53
/
101.9
100.92
100.55

11
/
103.72
/
/
/
/
100.39

12
104.16
104.03
/
/
/
/
100.33

13
104.65
104.67
/
/
/
/
100.18

14
104.68
104.62
/
/
/
/
/

15
105.09
104.82
/
/
/
/
/

Obviously, efficiency thermal of condensing boiler declines with the increase of supply water temperature
in the condition of the same outdoor temperature. When the supply water temperature continue to rise from
60, thermal efficiency decline faster. When the supply water temperature remains constant, thermal efficiency
increases with the rise of outdoor temperature. There is a certain nonlinear relationship between them. When the
supply water temperature rises to 75, thermal efficiency hardly changes, and maintains at 100.18%~100.55%.
The reason is that the latent heat recovering from water vapor is negligible.

V.

Conclusion

Through the experimental analysis of heating system, the factorsthe outdoor temperature and humidity
affecting thermal efficiency condensing boiler are calculated and analyzed. And the following conclusions can
be gotten.
1. The influence that outdoor humidity on thermal efficiency of the condensing boiler is less. When the
humidity increases by 60%, thermal efficiency will increase just only 0.15%. So the humidity as the factors
affecting thermal efficiency can be negligible.
2. The impact that outdoor temperature on thermal efficiency is more remarkable. Thermal efficiency is the
higher when the outdoor temperature is the higher.
Because of the experimental period is short and small changes in outdoor temperature conditions, some data
are not fully measured. So thermal efficiency affected by different outdoor temperature is required to have a
further detailed analysis. And the experimental parameters in different conditions need to be measured, which
will be explored in future experiments.

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